This is a blog for Texas State students taking FCS 4347 (Family Policy) to be able to post their weekly reading assignment (3 newspaper articles about issues or policies that effect individuals and families) and to write their reactions, opinions and implications of the articles.

4.Importance/effect on families/individuals: This can affect
individuals by violating their privacy and security if Apple decides to turn in
information to Federal Agencies.

My input: Even
though Apple claims that the information from fingerprints will stay stored in
the phone, this could possibly mean that we are safe with our information only
stored in our phones, but it could also mean that if your phone is somehow
synced to your computer or "iCloud" it could also share your
information with other people, creating a threat to individuals. Also this
fingerprint innovation can lead to Apple creating a fingerprint database and
Federal Agencies using this information to invade privacy of individuals to
help "solve cases" or for any other circumstances that they might think
they need this kind of information from individuals. This could also affect
individuals, when asked to give up their information because as it is stated in
the article " some
courts have ruled that forcing a defendant to provide the password for an encrypted
hard drive is a violation of the defendant’s Fifth Amendment privilege against
self-incrimination. It seems unlikely that the same level of protection would
apply to fingerprint scans because the police can obtain them merely through
access to a suspect's thumb." (Peterson) Therefore we better think twice
before we give up our fingerprints, simply because it’s a cool new feature
on a phone.